Katie Johnson and Debra Sutton won on directed verdict in a defamation and civil conspiracy trial against their client, in which the plaintiffs were seeking approximately $3 million in economic losses as well as punitive damages. The Court found that the plaintiffs failed to meet essential elements of the defamation and civil conspiracy claims.
Plaintiffs pursued both defamation per se and per quod claims against the client, regarding statements that the court had ruled pretrial concerned matters of public interest. As matters of public concern, the plaintiffs had the burden to prove that the statements caused them actual damages (per se) and special damages (per quod). Read More>>